


Life Can Be A Struggle

by Carpenterfan03



Category: Descendants (Disney Movies), Songbird - Fandom
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-17
Updated: 2021-02-23
Packaged: 2021-03-11 01:28:33
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 6,801
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28136952
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Carpenterfan03/pseuds/Carpenterfan03
Summary: It's the year 2024 COVID19 has mutated and is now COVID23. The world is now worse than it has ever been and everyone must stay inside their homes unless they have a yellow bracelet that indicates they are immune. Life is hard for everyone, but it's even harder for Sara Garcia who is not only in lockdown and trying to stay safe because of the virus, but is also trying to raise her baby sister Mal who is a Quarantine toddler and has never left the house before.Spoiler Alert Warning: May contain spoilers for Songbird.
Relationships: Sara and Nico
Kudos: 2





	1. A Curious Quarantine Toddler

**Author's Note:**

> Author's Note: This is a Songbird fan fiction with toddler Mal. Just warning this may contain spoilers from the movie, so if you haven't seen it before this is just a warning. Anyway this is gonna be a shorter story than normal because I already have a lot of stories, but I just got this idea and just had to write it. It's still gonna have a decent amount of chapters just not as much as my others. Anyway please let me know what you all thought so far and I hope you enjoy it.

“Sawa?” The small two year old cried out making Sara smile as she looked at her little sister. “Yeah Mal,” Sara asked the small girl. “Wa was id wike when you able go ouw,” the small girl asked her big sister as she had never been outside before.

Sara and her grandma were all the small girl really knew as she had been born during the pandemic and had been living in her home for literally her entire life. She had seen videos of the outside before covid, but she was never allowed outside or she would get taken away which is what Sara had told her.

She didn’t even know her mommy and daddy who had passed away shortly after she was born. Sara just sighed as she hated how scary the world had become and the fact that her little sister had never once seen the outside world.

“Mal it was amazing. We could go anywhere and hang out with anyone that we wanted to. People would go to work and children would go to school,” Sara told the small girl making her look at her in amazement. “Weawy! I wis I do dat! An wa ool!” The young girl asked her big sister in curiosity making Sara laugh.

“School was a place that kids went to, so they could learn and socialize. A lot of kids used to hate it though. But now they all miss it,” Sara told the small girl making her smile. “Why dey ha id,” Mal asked her big sister, making Sara laugh as she looked at the time.

“Because they found it boring and pointless,” Sara playfully told her sister, making her laugh. “Dey dib! Dib you!” Mal screamed out as she was loving getting to hear more about how life was before the pandemic. 

Sara just laughed as she tucked her baby sister into her crib. “Sometimes! Now it’s late okay get some sleep,” Sara told her small sister.

“Sawa! Why do we hab a wib hew an no go ow!” Mal whined out making Sara sigh as she looked at the small girl. “Because they have to make sure we don’t have the virus,” Sara told her sister who just nodded.

“Oh! Wa if we do!” The innocent girl asked Sara making her hold back her emotions as she knew exactly what happened if someone had the virus. They would all be taken away to Q zone which was where they would be left to most likely die. 

It was terrifying, but she didn’t want to tell the toddler that. “Mal don’t worry about it okay. Now please just get some sleep okay. Night Mal I love you,” Sara told the small girl who just nodded as she looked at Sara.

“Otay nigh nigh Sawa! Wob you too,” Mal called out as she rolled over and fell asleep. Once Sarah was sure her sister was sleeping she went back out to the living room to call her boyfriend for their virtual date night.

She had never met him in person, but they talked all the time through video chats and whenever he would deliver packages as only immunes could deliver packages and he happened to be part of the small group that happened to be immune to the virus.

They had actually met after he had accidentally got the address wrong on a package and had ended up pounding on her door over and over extremely loudly causing Mal who had been only a newborn at the time to start sobbing making her angry at the boy as she had also just lost her parents around that time and was trying to raise a baby on her own as she had her grandma, but her grandma was too old to be raising a baby and she had promised her parents if anything happened to them she would care for Mal. 

She had ended up yelling at him in spanish for being so loud and waking the baby in which he didn’t understand which eventually led to them having a conversation and the rest was history. They loved each other even though they had never even been in the same room together. 

Sara laughed as she talked with her boyfriend for a little bit before they called it a night and went to bed. Sara was woken up early the next morning by her little sister who had somehow climbed out of her crib and wanted Sara to play with her.

“Sawa! Wakie! Wakie!” The small toddler screamed out as she jumped up and down on Sara’s bed and shook her trying to make her big sister get up. Sara just laughed as she looked at her little sister.

“Mal it’s 3 in the morning why aren’t you sleeping,” Sara asked the toddler who giggled as she sat down by Sara. “I wan you!” The small girl told her big sister, making Sara smile as she pulled the toddler close to her.

“Alright fine, but you’re gonna sleep okay,” Sara told the toddler who nodded making Sara laugh again as she allowed the toddler to cuddle up on her and fall asleep. This peacefulness lasted a few hours before the toddler woke up again and decided to go have some more fun while her big sister and grandma slept.

Mal just carefully released her tiny body from Sara as she went running out of Sara’s room and started to climb up things as she wanted adventure, but she wasn’t allowed to go outside.

The tiny toddler continued with her “adventure” until she eventually got too tired and fell asleep on top of the fridge. 

While the toddler was sleeping on the fridge Sara was peacefully sleeping in her bed until she heard her grandma yelling in spanish causing Sara to quickly jump out of bed to see what was going on as her grandma was usually a very calm person. 

Sara quickly looked at her grandma in concern wanting to know what was wrong. Sara froze though when her grandma was pointing to the top of the fridge in which Sara could see sleeping right on top of it was none other than the tiny purple haired toddler. 

And yes Mal had purple hair and she had been born with it. It was completely unnatural, but then again they were living in an unnatural time and their mother had been taking a lot of experimental medicines during the time she was pregnant which they assumed is why she had been born with that hair color, but Mal loved it, so they didn’t really care. 

Sara just quickly rushed over to the fridge as she picked up the toddler causing the small girl to stir as she stretched and woke up. “Sawa?” The small girl called out in confusion as she looked around.

Sara just quickly placed the toddler down as she looked at her. “Mal, why were you sleeping on the fridge?” Sara asked her tiny sister, making her giggle. “I go on abenure!” The small two year old screamed out, making Sara sigh as she was getting really sick of having to stop the curious toddler from hurting herself every 5 minutes. 

“Okay well Mal we talked about this. That’s dangerous now come on,” Sara told the toddler, making the small girl get upset, but she calmed down when Sara gave her some paper and paint, letting the toddler paint just like what she does as it’s relaxing to her and helps her pass the time.

This went on for a few hours before the toddler got bored again as she put her painting down and carefully made her way towards the counters as she was determined to finish her adventure.

“Mal be careful! No! Get down!” Sara screamed out as she watched her little sister climb up on the counter again as she was bored again. They had been locked in their homes for years now and the small girl had never been anywhere outside of their home.

It was starting to drive the small two year old crazy as she was just so bored and was trying to create an adventure which always led to Sara having to drag her down from something before she fell like earlier when she found the toddler sleeping on the fridge. Yesterday she had found the toddler trying to wash herself with the laundry.

Which had been a scary surprise when she went to do the laundry and found the small girl laughing and sitting in the washer. And then Mal refused to get out of the washer, so Sara had to wait until after Mal fell asleep to get her out and do the laundry.

It also didn’t help that they didn’t have many toys as Mal had been born during the pandemic. Sara just smiled though when she saw her boyfriend was face timing as she quickly answered happy to talk to him again.

Sara smiled as she looked at her boyfriend through the screen as she loved him even though they had never been in the same room before because of the virus. Nico just immediately perked up as he looked at Sara.

“Good evening Miss Garcia,” Nico jokingly told Sara, making her laugh, but she stopped when she saw the toddler playing with the UV Sanitation machine which is how they get mail. “Mal! That’s not a toy! We’ve been over this!“ Sara screamed out. 

The small girl just started crying as she kept trying to play in the sanitation machine. “No wanna!” The small girl screamed out as she continued to play with the machine, making Sara give up as she ran over and picked up the toddler, making Nico laugh.

“What happened this time,” Nico jokingly told Sara, making her laugh. “She seems to think she’s mail,” Sara told her boyfriend as she placed the toddler back down making the small girl run off again.

“You know, have you ever thought about child proofing,” Nico jokingly told Sara, making her laugh again. “That stuff is way too expensive and hard to find right now plus knowing her she’ll just see it as another obstacle in her adventure,” Sara told her boyfriend, making him laugh.

“You know I still find it insane that you have a sister who has literally never seen the outside,” Nico told Sara, making her sigh as she knew Nico was right. Mal had been born in the house and she hadn’t left ever. 

“Yeah I know it’s crazy, so are we still on for date night,” Sara told her boyfriend making him smile as he loved their virtual date nights. “Oh yeah every night. You can’t get rid of me,” Nico told Sara playfully, making her laugh.

“Such a stalker,” Sara playfully told her boyfriend, making him laugh, deciding to play along. “Yeah well it’s easy when my victim can’t leave her home. You’re not missing much out here,” the older boy told Sara, making her smile as she looked at the view from his end as she really missed seeing the outside.

“Yeah except that view,” Sara told Nico as she really missed it. Nico just smiled as he moved his phone to get a better view making Sara laugh as she showed off her view. “This is my view though. I think mine is better,” Sara jokingly told Nico, making him laugh especially when he could see the toddler on top of the piano.

“Yeah I have to admit my view doesn’t have a toddler on a piano like yours does,” Nico playfully told Sara, making her quickly look back as she ran over in panic. “Wait what! Mal no! Get down! That’s dangerous!” Sara screamed out as she quickly grabbed the toddler. “Aw man where did the view go,” Nico playfully told Sara, making her laugh as she handed the toddler a tablet and placed her back down.

“You know I don’t get her lately. I swear every few minutes she’s trying to do something completely reckless! Like the other day I caught her trying to jump from the table to the couch and back,” Sara told her boyfriend, making him laugh.

“Yeah well I see she’s calm now,” Nico jokingly told Sara who laughed as she watched the toddler play on the tablet. 

“Yeah because I gave her the tablet. I know screen time is bad for kids, but I’m starting to not care anymore. Oh and Lita says hi! Right Lita!” Sara told her boyfriend and her grandma just smiled as she had a small conversation with Nico.

While Sara was distracted again talking to Nico the small toddler got bored again as she became curious as to who Sara was talking to as she put down her tablet and toddled over to Sara pulling at her making Sara laugh as she picked up the toddler and sat down.

“Hey Mal, what's wrong,” Sara playfully asked the toddler, making her look at the phone in confusion. “Who da!” Mal asked Sara making her and Nico laugh again as Sara looked at her sister.

“That’s Nico, remember. He’s the one that brings the packages. Can you say hi to Nico,” Sara told the toddler making the small girl laugh as she waved. “Hewo! Ico! Ooh you go ow! Da cool!” The small girl screamed out making Nico laugh as he smiled at the little girl.

“Hi Mal! And yeah you like it huh. Look how high up I am!” Nico told the toddler, making her face light up as she looked at the screen again. “Cool! I do da!” The small toddler screamed out excitedly as she squirmed and ran off again making Sara look at her boyfriend again.

“Did you really have to tell her that,” Sara asked Nico as he wasn’t helping the situation. Nico just laughed as he looked at Sara. “Come on! Let the kid live a little! I mean she’s literally never seen anything other than that house and she’s kinda having one of the worst childhoods without even realizing it,” Nico told Sara, making her sigh as she knew he was right.

“Yeah but if she gets hurt we’re screwed! No one even knows she exists, remember! And Nico please be careful don’t fall,” Sara told her boyfriend, making him laugh as they continued to talk a little more before saying goodbye as he had to get back to work. 

Sara groaned when she tried to get back to her painting, but she heard a loud crash and then screaming. “MAL!” Both Sara and their grandma screamed out as they went running to where the crash was as they knew it came from Mal. 

  
  



	2. The Consequence Of Not Listening

“Sawa! Owie!” The small girl cried out as she reached towards her big sister making Sara quickly run over to the small toddler as she picked her up examining her. “Mal are you okay!” Sara quickly asked the toddler who started crying as she moved her hand away from her forehead revealing a huge cut.

“Owie!” The small girl cried out as she tried to touch her forehead again, but Sara quickly pulled the small girl’s hand down as she looked at the cut knowing it was deep. 

“Mal please don’t touch it! And wow that’s another deep cut. That’s definitely gonna need stitches. Okay Mal stay here I’ll be right back!” Sara rambled out as she placed the small girl down and grabbed the first aid kit as Mal got hurt a lot, so Sara had to learn how to care for her at home. They weren’t allowed to leave their homes and no one even knew Mal existed anyway. 

“No! I no wan id!” The small girl screamed out when she saw Sara come out with the first aid kit as she knew what Sara was going to do as she had seen it before. Sara just sighed as she looked at her terrified sister. 

“Mal I don’t want to do this, but we have to stitch up that cut. I’m really sorry. This is what happens when you keep doing dangerous things and not listening,” Sara told the small girl who started crying as she tried to run, but Sara was faster as she caught the small toddler and laid her down on her bed.

“NO! I NO WAN! NO!” The small two year old screamed out uncontrollably as she thrashed around refusing to let her big sister anywhere near her cut. Sara just sighed as she knew she needed to stitch up the cut, but she didn’t know what to do to get Mal to behave.

She couldn’t promise Mal to take her somewhere fun like she probably would have had they been living in normal circumstances. They weren’t allowed to leave their homes. It was also extremely hard to get things, so she couldn’t bribe Mal with any toys or candy either as they didn’t really have that stuff.

Sara just sighed as she looked at the thrashing toddler again. “Mal hey shh it’s okay. I’ll be gentle I promise. I’m not trying to hurt you, but I need to help you. Hey it’s okay. Here do you want your pacie,” Sara told the toddler in her gentle voice making the small girl nod while still crying.

“Okay here you go! Shh it’s okay. Alright here we go,” Sara told the toddler as she placed Mal’s pacifier in her mouth. She knew it was probably a horrible idea to be having Mal put something in her mouth like that during a pandemic, but she constantly would boil it to get rid of the germs and it was the only thing Mal had as comfort. 

“Okay Mal I know this is going to hurt, but remember I’m doing this to help you okay,” Sara told the toddler who was calmer now as she had her pacifier, but she was still crying a little bit.

Sara took a deep breath as she sanitized Mal’s cut making the small girl start crying more as it stung. I know Mal! “I’m sorry! I hate this!” Sara told the small girl as she threaded the needle from the first aid kit.

“OWIE! OWIE! OWIE! NO MOW! NO MOW! SOP! SOP! SAWA PWEASE SOP! ID HUWS! ID HUWS!” The small girl screamed out at the top of her lungs as Sara finished threading the needle and had started sewing up Mal’s cut.

Sara just started crying a little bit as she hated seeing Mal in pain, but she couldn’t leave that cut open as it could lead to infection which she couldn’t handle at this point as infection meant fever and fever meant Q zone. 

Plus if Mal got an infection she couldn’t do anything to help her except give her some of the medicine they have there which wouldn’t be much help. She just couldn’t risk it. “I know Mal almost done! Almost done! And there we go! All done! No more Mal it’s over. Come here give me a hug,” Sara told the toddler making the two year old cry more as Sara helped her up.

“NO! I no wike you no mow!” The small girl screamed out as she placed her pacifier back in her mouth after it had fallen out from her screaming as she pushed past Sara and ran to her own room and pushed on the door the best she could to close it. 

Sara just sighed as she knew how this was going to play out. This wasn’t the first time Sara had to stitch up an injury from the small girl. Mal would get upset after and “lock” herself in her room for maybe 5 minutes before she would come running back over not liking being alone.

Sara smiled again though when her phone rang as she saw it was her boyfriend calling again. “Hey Nico!” Sara told Nico excitedly, making him laugh. “Hey where’s Mal,” Nico asked Sara, making her sigh as she looked at him.

“Mal and I are currently not on speaking terms,” Sara playfully told Nico, making him laugh. “What happened,” Nico asked Sara who laughed as she was about to answer, but stopped when she saw Mal’s door fly open as the small girl came running over towards her.

“Sawa! I sowy! I wob you!” The small girl screamed out as she ran over to Sara who laughed as she opened her arms and picked up the toddler as she balanced her on her hip. “It’s okay Mal and I love you too. Did you learn your lesson,” Sara told the small girl who just nodded as she laid her head down on Sara.

“Okay good! Anway what were we talking about,” Sara asked Nico as she had gotten distracted by the toddler and forgot what they had been talking about. Nico just laughed as he watched his girlfriend interact with her baby sister.

He loved how much she loved her family. “I believe you were about to explain why you and Mal weren’t on speaking terms,” Nico jokingly told Sara, making her laugh as she remembered.

“Oh yeah! We weren’t on speaking terms because you told her it’s okay to do dangerous things and climb up on things! She fell and had a really deep cut on her forehead and guess who had to stitch it up! Which led to her being mad at me because I hurt her even though I was just trying to help,” Sara told Nico, making him smile.

“Dr Garcia does have a nice ring to it! Don’t you think!” Nico jokingly told Sara, making her roll her eyes as she looked at him.

“Oh please! I could never be a doctor! And I hate having to do that, but I can’t let deep cuts go unfixed especially right now. And I still blame you for encouraging her,” Sara told Nico, making him laugh as he looked at the sleepy toddler cuddled up on Sara.

“Oh come on every kid gets hurt. It’s a part of childhood! You should be thanking me for helping her still experience normal childhood experiences like that,” Nico playfully told Sara, making her roll her eyes as she stood up when she saw the toddler closing her eyes as it was getting late.

“Yeah well it’s not fun having to watch her kick, scream, and cry in pain while I’m stitching her up with a needle! But don’t worry I’ll make sure you can watch next time since you want to keep encouraging it. Anyway I gotta get this little trouble maker to bed since it’s getting late. I’ll call you in a little bit once I’m done! Bye Nico talk to you soon,” Sara told Nico, making him laugh as he looked at the little girl that was falling asleep.

“Alright talk to you later bye Sara! See you soon,” Nico told Sara, making her smile as they finished the call. “Alright baby dragon let’s get you to bed,” Sara playfully told the toddler who giggled a little as she nodded. 

“Okay night baby dragon! I love you! And I’ll see you in the morning. I’m really sorry about earlier, but Mal that’s what happens when you keep climbing up on things. I’m trying to protect you because I love you,” Sara told the small girl who smiled as she nodded.

“Otay Sawa! I no do da no mow! An I wob you too! Nigh Nigh Sawa!” The small girl told Sara as she laid down in her crib and fell asleep.

Once Sara was sure the small girl was asleep she carefully closed Mal’s door as she sat down on the couch and started to call her boyfriend again as she wasn’t tired yet and both Mal and her grandma were sleeping, so she had no one else to talk to.

  
  



	3. Daydreams And Crib Escapes

“Hey I’m back,” Sara told Nico once Mal was passed out asleep and her parenting job was done for the night. Nico just laughed as he looked at his girlfriend through the screen. “Hey so you clocked out from your job already. Normally it takes longer,” Nico jokingly told Sara, making her laugh again.

“Yeah well it’s easier to get her to bed when she screams out all her energy,” Sara told Nico back making him nod as he knew he should drop the subject as it was obvious Sara was still upset at him for encouraging her sister to do dangerous things.

“Okay well moving on I talked to my buddy in Big Sur again and he said they haven’t had a case in 6 months,” Nico told Sara, making her sigh as they had both been dreaming of getting out of there and starting a new life together, but it was basically impossible as they couldn’t leave their houses without the yellow band and only Nico had one.

“If only we could get out of this city,” Sara told Nico sadly as she wanted a better life for not just herself, but for her grandma and baby sister who had never even seen the outside world not even once.

Sara hated that Mal was growing up like this. She deserved to see the outside world and be able to meet other kids and socialize, but unfortunately that was impossible and Sara knew that, but that didn’t mean she was going to give up on her dream. 

Nico just sighed as he was still trying to stay optimistic. “I’ve been trying to get my hands on some black market passes no hits yet, but once I find some I quarantine for three weeks and then we’re gone,” Nico told Sara, making her smile a little as she knew it was probably never going to happen, but she still wanted to have hope of it someday. 

Sara just laughed as they continued to just talk and mess around while they wasted time. “Oh wait check this out,” Nico told Sara excitedly interrupting their other conversation as he flipped his screen to show off his plants making Sara laugh again as she couldn’t believe his plants weren't dead yet.

“Hey your gardens actually not dead,” Sara told Nico playfully, making him laugh as he watered them a little. “Give it time. I swear all I do is water and nurture these things and all they do is die on me,” Nico told Sara making her laugh a little.

“You know we should take them with us when we leave. Lita has green fingers and it might be good for Mal to see real plants for once,” Sara told Nico happily as they would always talk about their dream life together.

Nico just laughed as he decided to play along with Sara. “Oh we’re getting Lita her own place by the way,” Nico told Sara, making her laugh as she decided to keep playing along. “Are we,” Sara asked Nico, making him laugh.

“Yeah I figure we have a lot of lost time to make up for and we’re not going to want to chaperone are we,” Nico told Sara back playfully, making Sara laugh as she knew he was playing around, but it was fun to mess with him.

“I’m telling her you said that and what about Mal,” Sara told Nico back, making him laugh again as he forgot about Mal for a second. “Oh yeah Mal. She can stay with Lita too,” Nico jokingly told Sara, making her a little upset as she knew he was joking around, but even hypothetically Sara would never leave Mal. 

“Okay you better be kidding because there is no way I would ever leave Mal,” Sara told Nico back as she knew they were playing around, but even the thought of leaving Mal with her grandma wasn’t something she liked.

Especially considering the fact that her grandma was way too old to be raising a hyper little girl like Mal. Nico quickly noticed his mistake as he tried to cover it up. “Okay yeah you’re right about that. We can keep Mal, but I still think Lita should get her own place,” Nico told Sara back playfully, making Sara laugh.

“Again I’m telling her you said that,” Sara told Nico back, making him laugh. “Do not tell her I said that,” Nico told Sara, making her hold back a smile as she looked at him. “I am,” Sara told Nico, making him laugh again.

“You know I’m terrified of her,” Nico told Sara, making her laugh as she couldn’t hold back anymore. “That’s why I’m telling her,” Sara playfully told Nico, making him laugh again. Nico was about to say something back, but as soon as he started talking there was a loud crash from Sara’s end making her panic as she knew exactly where the crash came from.

“What’s wrong is everything okay,” Nico asked Sara after he heard the crash making Sara look at him. “I don’t know! I gotta go! I’ll call you tomorrow!” Sara quickly told her boyfriend as she hung up and ran towards Mal’s room where the crash had been.

Sara sighed in relief when she saw Mal was okay as she was just sitting on the top of her dresser sucking on her pacifier. “Mal what are you doing,” Sara asked the toddler who smiled as she reached for Sara.

“Abenew!” The small girl told Sara who just sighed as she picked up the toddler and brought her down from the dresser. “Mal you promised to stop. And you scared me. What was that loud crash,” Sara asked the toddler who just giggled, making Sara sigh as she knew it was a lost cause trying to get the toddler to talk.

“Okay whatever. It’s bedtime. Come on back to bed,” Sara told the toddler as she placed the small girl back into the crib. Just as Sara was making her way out of the nursery though she heard another loud crash as she quickly turned around to see the toddler on the floor as she giggled and dusted herself off.

“So that’s what the crash was. Mal you can’t keep getting out of your crib,” Sara told the toddler as she picked her back up and placed her right back into the crib, but the small girl immediately tried to get out again.

“Mal! No! Stay in the crib!” Sara told the toddler, making the small girl cry as she tried to get out again, but Sara placed her right back. “Mal please don’t do this,” Sara told the toddler who just reached for her as she started crying again.

“Sawa!” The small girl cried out, making Sara sigh as she knew letting Mal out of the crib would allow the girl to do what she wants, but Mal was just too adorable and hard to ignore. “Okay fine, but you are going to actually sleep this time or this is the last time okay,” Sara told the toddler who nodded.

“Alright come on,” Sara told the toddler as she picked her up and brought her to her room just knowing she was going to regret this, but she was too tired to keep fighting with the toddler. 

  
  



	4. A Teething Toddler = No Sleep

“Sawa! Sawa! Sawa!” The small girl cried out in the middle of the night as her mouth was starting to hurt and she didn’t know what to do anymore. Sara just sighed as she opened her eyes and looked at the small girl that was crying while she was chewing on her fingers.

“Mal no! Don’t put your fingers in your mouth,” Sara quickly panicked out as she grabbed Mal’s hand and carefully removed it from her tiny mouth. 

Sara knew why Mal was doing it as she had been raising Mal since day one because their dad had passed away from the virus before Mal was born unfortunately and their mom passed during childbirth and from sickness as they had no doctors or medical help due to the fact that her mom didn’t want anyone to know about her pregnancy.

She had known the risk of having a baby like that, but she wanted her baby to have a chance even if it meant she wouldn’t. The decision had been hard, but they knew it was the right one and they had agreed during the choice that Sara would be the one to raise Mal. 

And the truth was Sara had always wanted kids, but by the time she was in her mid 20’s and with the pandemic it was looking like it would be impossible, but through the tragedy she did get that dream and while it was a tragedy of how it happened she wouldn't trade Mal for the world.

And she knew that Mal was just trying to soothe her gums, but she knew it was dangerous to be letting her put her germ infested hand in her mouth. This action just made the toddler cry more though as she wanted the pain to stop.

“Owie! Owie! Owie!” The young girl cried out as she massaged her tiny hand on her cheek. “Aw Mal come here. Let me see,” Sara told the small girl as she was pretty sure Mal was getting her two year old molars, but she wanted to be sure first.

Mal just shook her head no as she tried to chew her fingers again which was a strong indication to Sara that Mal was teething again as Mal had been like that before when she first started teething a little over a year ago.

The teething phase had been torture for them both especially because Sara was trying to keep Mal a secret and a screaming baby is extremely hard to keep a secret. Sara had been so relieved when Mal finally passed it, but she had completely forgotten about the two year molars as well, but now that they were here she couldn’t believe she had forgotten this phase as well.

“Aw Mal it’s okay. I know it hurts again, but it’s okay,” Sara cooed out to the toddler as she rocked her a little, but Mal just kept crying as she kept fighting to put her hands back in her mouth.

“No!” Mal cried out as she just wanted the pain to stop and Sara wasn’t helping in fact she was making it worse. Sara just sighed as she got up and disinfected a spoon before sticking it in the freezer to make it cold as Sara had learned that trick when Mal had first started the teething process as she didn't have any teethers, but it worked just as well.

“Mal it’s okay. We just have to wait a little bit for that to cool then you can chew on that all you want and it should help your pain. I know you want to touch it, but Mal that’s not safe remember what I said about putting stuff in your mouth,” Sara told the toddler in her gentle voice making the small girl continue to cry as she didn’t care.

It was hurting too much and she wanted it to go away. “Ma id sop pwease!” Mal cried out to Sara as she gave her the sad puppy dog eyes causing Sara to not be able to resist anymore as she was just going to have to make do with what she could. 

She would not let Mal put her fingers in her mouth though because Mal was always getting into things and Sara didn’t trust the germs even after washing Mal’s hands over and over again.

“Okay Mal I’m gonna be right back,” Sara quickly told the toddler as she placed her down on the bed and tried to get up, but Mal started screaming and crying as loud as she could as she reached towards Sara.

“NO! NO WEABE! NO WEABE!” The small toddler cried out at the top of her tiny lungs making Sara sigh as she quickly picked up the toddler and bounced her a little trying to calm her down again.

“Aw Mal it’s okay. I just need to do something really quickly it’ll help you,” Sara told the toddler trying to convince her to let her get up so she could get the spoon from the freezer, but Mal just kept crying as she clung tighter to Sara.

“Okay Mal what if we went out together does that work,” Sara asked the toddler hoping that Mal would give in and not be difficult this time. Sara sighed in relief when it worked as Mal just nodded her tiny head allowing Sara to get up as she grabbed the cold spoon and gave it to the toddler letting her chew it.

She was still crying, but she wasn’t screaming anymore which was a relief to Sara and to their grandma who was sleeping. Sara knew that the spoon wasn’t going to last for long though and she was in for a long night as that spoon would work for a little bit, but it would eventually wear off and Mal would be back to screaming in pain.

Sara really hated this part of parenting it was not only torture for Mal to go through, but it was painful to watch. She hated hearing her baby girl cry in pain and suffering and she couldn’t do much to ease it.

She didn’t even have any actual teethers because they had forgotten to buy some with the regular baby supplies plus it was almost impossible to find any teethers in the state that the world was in. 

Sara sighed in relief when Mal finally stopped crying as she fell asleep with the spoon making Sara worried as she didn’t think that was safe. Sara just took a deep breath and held it as she very carefully removed the spoon from the toddler as she didn’t want to wake her but she couldn’t let Mal sleep with that in her mouth.

Just as Sara was about to relax as she thought she was in the clear and could actually try to get some sleep Mal started to stir and that immediately turned to screaming again as she woke up and felt the pain again.

“Ugh great,” Sara practically screamed out in frustration before regaining her calm attitude again as she bounced Mal on her lap trying to calm her. Sara was about to just accept that she was in for a night of suffering until she felt her phone as she remembered her boyfriend.

Sara just smiled as she immediately grabbed her phone and found her boyfriend’s name. “Hey Mal I have an idea do you wanna talk to Nico,” Sara asked the toddler who just nodded as she chewed on the spoon again.

“Okay great let’s call Nico,” Sara told the toddler who seemed to calm down more as she nodded again making Sara laugh as she pressed on Nico’s name. “Sara it’s 3 in the morning is everything okay,” Nico asked his girlfriend in concern, making Sara laugh a little as she found his concern to be adorable and sweet.

“Yeah everything’s fine but this little cutie as you can see is getting her molars, so it’s gonna be a long night,” Sara playfully told Nico as she bounced the crying toddler again. “Aw poor kid I’m gonna make it better for her tomorrow,” Nico told Sara, making her laugh as she loved how much he not only cared about her, but he loved Mal too.

“And how do you plan to do that,” Sara jokingly asked her boyfriend just playing along with his little game. Nico just laughed as he wrote something down then looked back up at her.

“I’m not telling you I want it to be a surprise, but trust me she’s gonna love it. Anyway it’s really late and as much as I love talking to you both I have some important drop offs early in the morning,” Nico told Sara, causing her to smile again as she couldn’t help it.

“Yeah you’re right and I think she finally fell asleep, fingers crossed it stays that way. Night Nico. And sorry that I interrupted your sleep I just really needed someone to talk to,” Sara told her boyfriend quietly once she noticed Mal had fallen asleep again. 

“Of course I’m always here for you all and I hope she stays sleeping too. Good luck night Miss Garcia,” Nico playfully told Sara, making her laugh again as they both hung up. Sara just looked at the sleeping toddler as she very carefully placed her phone down and was about to fall asleep when she heard the cries again.

“No! Why!” Sara groaned out as she bounced the crying toddler once again just knowing she definitely wasn’t getting any sleep for the night. 

  
  



End file.
